5 things to watch as Mets face Cardinals in three-game series at Citi Field

Here are five things to watch when the Mets and Cardinals play a three-game series at Citi Field starting on Friday night...

J.D. Martinez's debut

Martinez finished his rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday night, and is set to join the Mets and be in the starting lineup for Friday's series-opener.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said the plan is for Martinez to bat fifth, behind Pete Alonso.

The injection of the power-hitting Martinez comes at a time when the Mets -- who recently lost Francisco Alvarez for six-to-eight weeks -- can really use it.

It is likely that Martinez will ease in a bit after ramping up, which means he'll have some days off here and there as he gets fully into the swing of things.

On days when Martinez doesn't start, it's likely that DJ Stewart will be in the lineup. Stewart's role when Martinez plays will ordinarily be that of a spot-starter in the outfield and bench bat.

The Francisco Lindor breakout is here

I wrote before the Mets faced the Giants in San Francisco that Lindor -- who had reached base in 13 consecutive games to that point -- was well on his way to fully breaking out of his early-season slump.

That breakout has arrived, and Lindor put an exclamation point on it with a 4-for-4 day on Wednesday that included two home runs to right field that he hit from the left side of the plate.

Over his last 16 games, Lindor is slashing .288/.347/.515 with four homers, two doubles, and nine RBI.

During that 16-game span, he has raised his OPS from .216 to .652.

With his recent power surge, Lindor is now on pace to finish the season with 27 home runs.

Will Adrian Houser bounce back?

Houser, who gets the ball on Saturday, had a start to forget this past Sunday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, getting pummeled for eight runs in just 4.0 innings.

That start ballooned Houser's ERA to 7.45 and his WHIP to 1.76 over his first four starts, which also included a tough outing against the Atlanta Braves.

In Houser's other two starts -- against the Detroit Tigers and Pittsburgh Pirates -- Houser allowed three runs in 10.1 innings.

It's hard to draw conclusions about anyone based off rough starts against the powerhouses that are the Dodgers and Braves, but it's fair to say Houser will have to be more consistent.

With top prospect Christian Scott dominating in Triple-A and starting to knock on the door, things could get interesting if Houser -- who has experience working in a hybrid starter/reliever role -- continues to struggle.

Can Jose Butto keep excelling?

Butto's success has been huge for the Mets with injuries to Kodai Senga, David Peterson, and Tylor Megill testing their depth early.

In 16.1 innings over three starts, the 26-year-old has a 1.65 ERA (2.60 FIP) and 1.04 WHIP.

Butto has struck out 21 batters in those 16.1 innings, good for an elite K rate of 11.6 per nine.

He was a bit wild in his start in Los Angeles, but some of that seemed to be part of a game plan where he was intentionally pitching around the Dodgers' biggest bats.

Butto gets the start in Friday's series-opener.

The Cardinals' struggling sluggers

St. Louis enters this series with a record of 11-14, sitting in last place in the NL Central.

Some big injuries have hurt the Cards early, including ones to Tommy Edman and Dylan Carlson.

And the Cardinals' biggest bats have started slow, further hampering a team that has scored just 87 runs -- the second-lowest total in the NL, behind only the Washington Nationals.

Paul Goldschmidt is hitting just .200/.294/.278 with two home runs.

Nolan Arenado is getting on base at a nice clip, with a .343 OBP, but has only hit one homer over the first 25 games.

If the Mets' pitching can keep Goldschmidt and Arenado from doing much damage, it should bode well for their chances to take the series.